Queen Creek has big plans for its old landfill

The 60-acre Queen Creek Landfill near Riggs and Hawes roads is buzzing with heavy machinery as workers bury the 38-year-old dump once and for all.

That dump, which opened in 1972, will eventually support desert vegetation, a multi-use trail for hiking, jogging and horseback riding and overflow parking for the neighboring Horseshoe Park & Equestrian Centre.

Troy White, Queen Creek public-works manager, said the town planned a $1.5 million trail system in its five-year capital improvement plan, but those plans were shelved when the economy imploded.

Now, White said, the trail will be up to a 1 1/2 miles long and link up with the Sonoqui Wash trail.

But he cautioned: "You're looking at five to seven years" before opening.

About 4 million tons of trash, ranging from banana peels to car tires, now rest beneath several feet of dirt, said Jake Wilhite, operations maintenance supervisor for the Maricopa County Solid Waste Management Department.

That means the trash extends about 50 to 60 feet deep, he added.

That garbage, which will be buried under several feet of dirt and clay by the time work ends in October, poses no danger to animals and humans, officials say.

"Most of what you got here is just household waste," Wilhite said. "There was never any hazardous materials per se."

Even so, William Thornton, the county's director of solid waste, said residents may be limited to what they can do on that land.

"I don't know about picnicking," he said. "(But) it's perfectly safe for them to be up on the landfill itself."

He pointed out that other parks have been built atop landfills, such as Chandler's $12 million Paseo Vista Recreation Area at the northwestern corner of Ocotillo and McQueen roads.

That 64-acre park, known by some residents as "Mt. Chandler" due to the 40-foot mound covering 2 million tons of trash, has an archery range, Frisbee golf course, and playground.

"So there are some things you can do with closed landfills, but in some cases it's very expensive," he said.

Converting closed landfills into city parks is common in other parts of the country, as well. Among the 250 old landfills that have been transformed from dump to park are Flushing Meadows in New York, home to the U.S. Tennis Open, and the site of an annual hot-air balloon festival in Albuquerque and an international kite festival in Berkeley, Calif.